Updated 2021 sailing plans from several major cruise lines – Business Insider
- No major US cruise line will be setting sail around the country until, at earliest, March.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still recommends avoiding cruise trips as the coronavirus pandemic continues to rage on.
- These are the updated 2021 sailing plans for cruise lines like the Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Disney Cruises.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Bad news for any eager cruisegoers: cruise lines are continuing to extend cruising suspensions into 2021 as the COVID-19 pandemic continues.
The cruising industry initially saw a quiet period after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention posted and extended its no-sail order as the coronavirus pandemic began surging in 2020. But after months of of waiting, in October, the CDC replaced its mandatory sailing pause with the “Framework for Conditional Sailing Order,” a list of rigorous requirements needed for cruise lines to continue operating again.
Despite this order, and the impending debut of several cruise ships over the next few years, the return of cruising still remains in limbo. Presently, no major US cruises will be setting sail until March the earliest, but many cruise line are now continuing to push back its sail dates as the coronavirus pandemic continues to surge around the US.
Keep scrolling to see the updated sailing suspension dates for several major cruise lines:
Norwegian Cruises
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According to a suspended sailings update on December 29, 2020, Norwegian has hit the pause button on all of its cruises that were set to sail through March.
Princess Cruises
Reuters
Princess Cruises originally paused its trips through March, according to a notice posted on November 20, 2020. However, on January 6, the cruise line extended this timeline, announcing it would halt further sailings through May 14.
The Princess Cruises has also paused all sailings through November 1 that were set to be longer than seven days going to and from US ports, and any trips sailing to and from Japan through June 25, according to the November notice.
“We continue to prepare our ships for our return to service and we are eager to see our guests back on board to create summertime memories,” Jan Swartz, Princess Cruises’ president, said in a statement.
When the cruise line resume sailing, several ships — including the Diamond Princess and the Grand Princess — will have Princess’ MedallionClass Experience. This “experience” includes new health protocols and contactless features, to name a few details.
Carnival Cruises
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A full list of suspended sailing dates per ship is available on Carnival’s website. According to this list, no Carnival cruises will be setting sail until after March 31, although several ships will stay docked even further into the future, according to a January 6 news release.
For example, according to a press release posted on December 9, 2020, Carnival has set up dry docks for the Carnival Magic, Carnival Paradise, and Carnival Valor, therefore halting any of the ships’ embarkments through September 24, May 31, and September 11, respectively.
“We are sorry to disappoint our guests, as we can see from our booking activity that there is clearly a pent-up demand for cruising on Carnival,” Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line, said in a statement on the news release.
The upcoming inaugural Mardi Gras trip was also pushed back as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Royal Caribbean
Royal Caribbean International
Royal Caribbean will be suspending any cruise trips through February 28, according to a December 17, 2020 update. The two exceptions to this are Australia-based sailings, which will stay suspended until April 30, and the new Odyssey of the Seas ship, which will stay docked until March 26.
According to a press release from December 2, Royal Caribbean’s Celebrity Cruises has also halted its trips through February 28, with a further suspension extension on South American sailings through April 7.
Royal Caribbean’s Silversea Cruises brand will stay suspended until April 1 (with the exception of the Silver Origin cruise, which will have a February 6 trip). Royal Caribbean’s Azamara line will remain suspended through March 20.
The earliest Royal Caribbean ship to resume sailing will be in China with the Spectrum of the Seas. This particular ship will only be suspended through January 20.
Celebrity Cruises
Celebrity Cruises
Celebrity Cruises has suspended all trips through February 28, and South America sailings with the winter 2021 program through April 7, according to a travel alert posted on December 2.
Holland America Line
Reuters
Holland America will be pausing all cruise trips through April 30, according to an update on January 6. Alaska cruises originally set to depart through mid-May have also been canceled, although some will be halted even further into June.
Several international trips — specifically ones in Canada and the Mediterranean — will be frozen even longer with a pause extension through August for select trips. You can find the pause timeline on Holland America’s website.
Disney Cruises
Christian Charisius / Reuters
According to a travel alert posted on December 11, 2020, Disney Cruises has halted all trips through February 28. Cruises longer than seven nights have been suspended even further. See the full list of suspended Disney Cruises here.
MSC Cruises
REUTERS/Manuel Silvestri/File Photo
MSC released a list of cancellation dates per cruise ship. Trips on the MSC Armonia, for example, have been canceled until February 28, while the MSC Divinia won’t see any sailings until after March 27.
PO Cruises
Jason Reed/Reuters
PO has halted all trips through April.
Read more: Carnival’s CEO reveals the advice he would give to his 25-year-old self
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